Seems like youth violence -- and ways to address it -- is all over the news right now.
1. Research: Children Exposed to or Victims of Violence More Likely to Become Violent.
A study of 800 children between ages 8 and 12 showed that kids exposed to violence think it’s normal and are more likely to become aggressive.
2. Evidence-Based Practices for Children Exposed to Violence: A Selection from Federal Databases.
This publication from the U.S. Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services "summarizes findings from federal reviews of research studies and program evaluations to help communities improve outcomes for children exposed to violence. It cites evidence-based practices that practitioners and policymakers can use to implement prevention services and activities for these children." (H/t to www.findyouthinfo.gov.)
3. National Summit on Gender-Based Violence Among Young People: Reading Materials
"On April 6th and 7th, The Department of Education hosted The National Summit on Gender-Based Violence Among Young People. The summit brought together more than 150 major organizational, federal and academic leaders to discuss how to translate research into practice, highlight promising practices, and provide the field with the tools they need to serve our nation's students. The purpose was to engage federal partners and the broader field in developing a comprehensive federal strategy to address the issue of Gender-Based Violence among young people. Topics discussed included: domestic violence, teen dating violence, sexual harassment and sexual assault." (Hat tip to www.findyouthinfo.gov.)
The Department of Justice hosted this summit on April 4, 2011. (You can read Attorney General Eric Holder's speech) here; and event coverage from The Crime Report here.) Mayors and other officials from six cities -- Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Memphis, Salinas (CA), and San Jose -- presented comprehensive plans to prevent youth violence in their communities. The Departments of Justice, Education, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Labor and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy are collaborating to provide technical assistance to the participating cities.
According to JUVJUST , the cities' comprehensive plans to prevent youth violence are available at www.findyouthinfo.gov, but I wasn't able to find them. However, you can find a lot of related resources on youth violence prevention on that site.
The above story is reprinted with permission from Reclaiming Futures, a national initiative working to improve alcohol and drug treatment outcomes for youth in the juvenile justice system.